Yet instead of being replaced by public libraries or correspondence schools in the past (as some experts had predicted) or by TED video lectures more recently, college has become more ingrained in our culture than ever.
Dr Eoin O'Malley, who lectures in politics at University College Dublin, suggests Sinn Fein has the added burden of managing two constituencies on this issue.
The Louisville native first attracted public attention in 1908 for his book The American College, which condemned higher education for its reliance on lectures versus small classes and hands-on teaching.
"Take your child to work" could become a routine practice rather than a single-day annual event, and college students could spend more time watching and helping scientists and scholars at work rather than just listening to their lectures.